Los Angeles

114th annual Golden Dragon Parade on February 16 may be the main event, but L.A.’s two-week-long Chinese New Year celebration reflects the multicultural, even hipster, vibe of its Chinatown. Alongside the and performances of traditional music, dance, drums, acrobatics, martial arts and crafts, this year’s Chinese New Year festival (February 16 and 17) will include indie bands, a beer garden and gourmet food trucks, the mark of any self-respecting L.A. street fair. Plus, this year L.A.is going for the world record for paper folding, aiming to assemble over 80,000 sheets of paper into a sculpture of a snake, symbol of the New Year in the Chinese zodiac.